ReMedPar’s global success as a firm is primarily rooted on the company’s great focus on processes that resulted to greater attraction of consumers worldwide. One process that the company is known to excel with was its engagement on supply chain management. Supply chain management refers to that process of managing the flow of materials, funds as well as information across the entire supply chain starting from suppliers to component producers up to the final assemblers and distribution and finally to consumers. The main goal of supply chain management is to give value and efficiency on a company’s entire supply chain. 

ReMedPar was established in 1987 and is the biggest independent provider of medical diagnostic imaging components in America. ReMedPar has been one of the top companies in enhancing service resources for medical imaging needs and establishes itself apart by its commitment to excellent quality. ReMedPar offers certified equipment from GE, Toshiba and other companies. They also have Technical Training for Lightspeed, OEC 9800 and others. ReMedPar, however, is not yet a certified ISO9000 supplier of medical diagnostic imaging components.

ReMedPar aids in establishing pleasant and conducive environments with properlydesigned medical diagnostic imaging components that integrates new innovations into various settings, in which individuals can function with ease (Hugos, 2006). The company is sensitive to the appearance and texture of medical diagnostic imaging components and. The company always creates the highest value to their clients who crave about excellent quality of medical equipment. The company also establishes and nurture a vibrant office setting in which their workers are properly compensated and taught to respect the clients and the quality of the medical diagnostic imaging components they create (Miller, 2005). They want fair and just profit, sufficient to manage the company economically healthy in the future.

Supply Chain Management

Raw Materials

ReMedPar provides excellent quality medical diagnostic imaging components manufactured to efficiently integrate medical machines into the hospital setting. The major aspect of the medical diagnostic imaging components is the excellent design and space allotment. The company relies on their access of the newest innovations in ergonomics, integrated with excellent design aspects of quality medical diagnostic imaging components. Through this, their products manage their top position in the market. Their patents are a significant competitive advantage (Aronson, 1961). No other company can match the manner they convert a setback — having to assemble the medical diagnostic imaging components — into an advantage. Their client surveys prove that clients view the assembly process as an improvement to the level of quality. 

Forecasting

Forecasting is utilized by the company in the evaluation of their clients’ demands for their medical diagnostic imaging components. The company’s planning of activities essentially involves forecasting. The company evaluates forecasting through both key statistical figures and a consensus procedure.

Supplier selection

The medical diagnostic imaging components industry has been through a huge deal of progress in this decade. The progress of the suppliers made some huge brands powerful. They create practically affordable medical diagnostic imaging components that create compromises in order to maintain the affordable price. Producers of excellent medical diagnostic imaging components are basically shuffling for places to settle in. Although ReMedPar was practically created around an environment, most of the basic producers of medical diagnostic imaging components are searching for environments, attempting to deal with declining profit as the volume goes elsewhere. 

In principle, however, the company’s rivals are not in their level. The company competes against generalized producers of medical diagnostic imaging components and the major products in the significant channels. It isn’t that clients select their rivals rather than their medical diagnostic imaging parts; it is that they select lesser quality, important materials rather than the quality medical diagnostic imaging components the company provides. 

ReMedPar establishes a list of potential suppliers. Once they have obtained a shortlist, they meet with the potential suppliers and inquire regarding the written quotation and sample products (Lambert, 2005). The company gives them with clarified information of what they need from a supplier, the frequency of these needs and the level of quality and excellence that they have. The company is able to wait for the potential suppliers pricing details for a maximum time of three months. The company is also amenable for discounts for high-end contracts. Once the company is able to obtain the quotation, they compare all the candidate suppliers with regard to the elements ort important factors for the company. For instance, the quality of their medical diagnostic imaging components is the most essential for the company as well as the locations of the potential suppliers.

Procurement

Strategic schemes are established by ReMedPar with their suppliers to assist the production flow control procedures and development of new medical diagnostic imaging components. Because the company’s operations extend internationally, their sourcing processes are handled well on an international basis. The desired output of the company is always a positive relationship, where all parties take advantage, and lesser times in the design period and medical diagnostic imaging components development are attained. Also, the purchasing process of the company creates quick interaction systems, like electronic data interchange (EDI) and online connections to shift possible needs and details immediately. Initiatives connected to getting materials from external suppliers undergoes resource planning, supply sourcing, order placement, excellent modes of transport, product management and excellent quality, many of which involve the role of the company to cooperate with their suppliers in scheduling and research into new sources.

Total quality management

In ReMedPar, it is a company philosophy that “Quality drives profitability.” Improved income is a potent source of jobs and technological advancement for ReMedPar. Nevertheless, this has not been the usual processes according to the history of quality implementation at ReMedPar. In the past the company simply expected that some markets selected cheaper medical diagnostic imaging components than those with excellent quality. Majority of investigations of ReMedPar concerning quality pertain to an accomplished part. Monitoring and evaluation, which is what quality implementation usually means in the company, is established on previous happenings, since the work is already done (Fredendall, 2000). In the past few years, however, ReMedPar realized that the best way to think regarding quality improvement is in process and operations control. If the processes are under proper control, too much tracking is not necessary.

The most distinct philosophy of quality in ReMedPar is to identify the needs of the customers. The clients of Toyota also have their opinions regarding their overall quality experience. The overall quality experience of the customer is the sum of all the aspects that customers have with the company’s services. For example, when the clients hire the services of ReMedPar for orders, the client establishes an assessment based on the way the orders and delivery of the medical diagnostic imaging components services were done, and the ways it was delivered.

Upon the careful analysis of trends in quality improvement in ReMedPar, some ideas that emerged include: (1) the nature of the natural gaps that occur in the areas of production in ReMedPar; (2) needs for quality skills development; and (3) quality improvement to earn the trust and confidence of customers. Aside from these observations, ReMedPar has studied the factors that create an effect on the particular parts of their production development. They were able to determine that optimizing production processes by making use of the actual total quality management methods to obtain costs assessments was critical to their success. This empowers ReMedPar to do quality innovations with ease to minimize production costs when technologies

are still cost-effective.

There is one area of quality improvement in ReMedPar at present that is considered a worldly idea. In the past, when ReMedPar made initiatives to improve their overall quality, usually pertained to as producing lesser inferior medical diagnostic imaging components, they did so in return for bigger budget, longer work hours and longer life cycle. Their customers could not get excellent medical diagnostic imaging components with smaller costs. However, when the company started to implement comprehensive quality control processes, all aspects of quality – customer satisfaction and fewer inconsistencies, and minimized costs, were all improved. The current quality improvement metrics of the company have the elements that create benefits.

In ReMedPar, quality improvement procedures are used in establishing schemes to make sure that their services are done to surpass customer demands. These plans are most of the time established in lieu with other quality concepts using a cross-operational approach. Quality management in ReMedPar includes all tasks from design creation, parts processing, manufacturing, application and innovation. It includes the concepts of the quality of medical diagnostic imaging components, and other schemes linked to complete quality management of

ReMedPar.

Inventory management

The management of the inventory of ReMedPar in the supply chain includes controlling the physical goods as well as the prices of the medical diagnostic imaging components as it goes through the supply chain.  Inventory management in the supply chain of ReMedPar follows the following order of events:

1. Clients orders for new medical diagnostic imaging components from the suppliers to main office. 
2. The main office gives purchase orders to ReMedPar.
3. ReMedPar transports the medical diagnostic imaging components 
4. The warehouse of the company obtains the medical diagnostic imaging components. 5) Warehouse stores the medical diagnostic imaging components and disseminates to the suppliers of ReMedPar.
5. ReMedPar suppliers get the medical diagnostic imaging components
6. Medical diagnostic imaging components are sold to clients 

Customer relationship management

The customer relationship management process of ReMedPar is highly valued by the company. They are able to meet and establish an excellent relationship between their company and their clients. Their excellent customer service gives the source of client information. It also gives their clients with accurate data on important order schedules and availability of the medical diagnostic imaging components through constant interaction with the company’s manufacturing and distribution departments. ReMedPar utilize the following steps to establish their client relationships:

• Identify mutually satisfying objectives between the company and  their clients
• Create and manage client rapport 
• Establish  positive emotions in the company and the clients

Promotional Strategy

In the early 2000s, ReMedPar was able to widen its business all over the US, by advertising in various important magazines. Clients could now place an order factory-direct and have their order sent in their residence in any location in America. Again, the similar mission, who had established the company thus far, still worked: excellent value, affordable prices and quality service. Also, ReMedPar was one of the pioneer companies to establish its existence over the Internet, therefore widening its income globally. ReMedPar maintains its position as one of the top companies in the industry of medical diagnostic imaging parts. This was very obvious when in the latter part of year 2000; ReMedPar was able to transfer into another location. 

Modes of Transportation

  ReMedPar is known to make use of “cross docking” as a technique of reducing its costs of sales by about 2 to 3%. Cross docking refers to the process of picking of finished goods from the manufacturing plant of a supplier which are sorted out and directly supplied to the consumers.

Cross docking, as a process strategy, gives ReMedPar the edge in terms of reducing transportation costs, lesser cases of damaged products, lesser utilization of warehouse space and more importantly, delivering quality medical diagnostic imaging components to the clients. The technique assures the company that the medical diagnostic imaging components it offers its clients are of great quality and are of lower price since the company saves more resources from this form of supply chain management. Another process strategy that the company involved itself was its investment on information technology and communication systems to be able to track merchandise inventories and effectively track sales in major suppliers across the country. For instance, the company built its own satellite system that supports on the communication process of the distribution centres and stores of the company around the world. 

Location Strategies

 ReMedPar’s first distribution centre was formally established in 1987. At present, the company is operating in more than 15 countries located strategically so as to maintain the hold of the market. Evidently, the company’s global operations have a great impact in terms of profitability as well as on the costs associated with maintaining the operations and management of each distribution centres and stores (Jung, 2007). However, as a location strategy, ReMedPar recognized the importance of putting investments on different locations so as to avoid the economic uncertainties on one location. In addition, the company also has an approach of keeping its stores close to each other so that the company could save on shipping costs. The company has done a good decision as this very first store provides the diffusion of stores that radiates out to other states and cities in the United States. 

 Another feature of strategy in terms of location of the company was its ability to build network of stores serving different products and services. The company is known to serve from different business retail formats to include medical diagnostic imaging components. The fact that the company has operations in more than 15 countries makes the company more profitable as international operations accounts to more than 20% of the total sales of the company in a year.

These location strategies have brought profitability and expansion to ReMedPar. As the company continues these strategies, it is no wonder that the company will continue to dominate in the field of their business and provide the needed products and services to its global consumers with quality but at affordable price. 

Areas of Improvement

• The company has to reaffirm its dedication to the quality of the medical diagnostic imaging components. They have to keep in mind the following simple rule: excellent materials, excellent processing, and excellent results. 
• Excellent marketing: the company has to be able to search for quality-based clients in the appropriate channels, and they must always guarantee that their clients can locate them. In the area of marketing, sales promotion and merchandizing, the advertising messages would play on projecting happiness and getting the attention and interests of people, while using the media in creating larger brand awareness. Intensive media advertising through all forms of visibility campaigns in the print, television and outdoor channels must be pursued by the company in earnest.  The use of Internet advertising can also prove to be a sound initiative considering the popularity of the cyberspace as a venue to promote and market new lines of products and services. 
• Almost-immediate construction: The company does not ship completely manufactured medical diagnostic imaging devices, but assembly is so basic that it makes the client experience excellent quality. However, this concept can still cause annoyance to their clients. They have to think of other ways to improve on this innovation.

ReMedPar needs to redefine its supply chain management strategy. The objective of the plan has to be centred on the essential components of supply chain management that are considered the pivotal drivers of customer satisfaction and patronage experience. Additionally, the supply chain management approach of the company needs to be reinforced by the mission message of quality, service and value, while anchoring the strategy on vital component element of success on operational excellence, innovation and leadership marketing.  The strategy has to be engineered by passionate and inspiring leaders whose emphasis should be on customer experience to bolster a system wide delivery of dedicated and superior business attitude among staff and clients of the company. Through this, ReMedPar should start recording double-digit percentage in sales, while posting double rebounds in stock prices due to the operating strategy of making ReMedPar’s services better if not bigger. 

REFERENCES

Fredendall, L, 2000. Basics of Supply Chain Management.  CRC; 1^st edition

Hugos, M, 2006. Essentials of Supply Chain Management. Wiley; 2nd Edition 

Jung, H, 2007. Trends in Supply Chain Design and Management: Technologies and

Methodologies.  Springer; 1^st  edition

Lambert, D, 2005. Supply Chain Management: Processes, Partnerships, Performance. Supply Chain Management Institute. 2nd edition. 

ReMedPar Official Website. Retrieved March 21, 2009 at http://www.remedpar.com/